Pat’s Chocolate Chip Bars

Today’s recipe was given to me by a really good cook named Pat. She bakes her chocolate chip bars in a 15×10 inch pan, but you can also make half the recipe and use a 13×9 inch pan. I made a half batch version and it was done in 20 minutes. The bars came out of the oven a little cakey, then settled into dense, firm-but-moist bars. They’re loaded with chocolate chips and that is something I would not change. The nuts are a good addition, but you can leave them out if you want.

Cream the butter and sugars, beat in the eggs and vanilla.. Combine the dry ingredients and blend in. Add chips and nuts. Spread in a greased 15x 10 inch baking pan. Bake at 350F (176 C) for 15-20 minutes. Cool and cut into bars. (Anna's Note -- My half batch took about 20 minutes, Janet's full batch took 30, so watch the bars and check at 20 minutes.

Notes

Pat’s Note:
have had this recipe for over 35 years, and have no clue as to where it came from. You can also do the drop way, but I am so lazy, this works better for me. When I shipped them, I lined a trash bag box with foil (heavy duty) and then wrapped the box in foil again. . They stacked nicely

This recipe looks like one that will become one of my favorites (love all those chocolate chips).

More importantly, thank you for thinking of the troops, baking for them and sending them something special. My brother was a marine and did two tours in Iraq. Packages from families are great. Special gifts – like these cookie bars are wonderful for them. Just wanted to thank you for thinking of them.

Thank you for thinking of the troops! When my husband was in Iraq someone told me to put a piece of white bread in with the cookies I sent – the moisture from the bread is absorbed into the cookies, helping to keep the cookies from becoming dry. I did a test run, and it was in fact very helpful, the bread was as hard as a rock, but the cookies were very fresh.
Again, thanks for supporting our troops!!
Trish –
Proud Army Wife

These are yummy. I left out the nuts (allergic to) and I made a half batch with a pinch of salt. I baked mine for 24 minutes, but probably would have been fine at 20 (I just wasn’t sure because it was still so light after 20 minutes)…They are moist and bursting with chocolate! Yum! I’m taking them to work tomorrow to see what everyone says…